Monday, May 4, 2009

Soundtrack: Some Kind of Wonderful (1987)

Some Kind of Wonderful is a 1987 film starring Eric Stoltz, Lea Thompson, and Mary Stuart Masterson. It was one of the many successful teen dramas written by John Hughes in the 1980s, although this one was directed by Howard Deutch. The film's title comes from a song by John Ellison (Soul Brothers Six) that was a hit for Grand Funk Railroad; the song itself is not featured in the movie.

Synopsis

The tomboyish Watts (Masterson) has always considered working-class Keith Nelson (Stoltz) her best friend, but when he begins dating the popular Amanda Jones (Thompson), she realizes that she feels something much deeper for him. Hardy Jenns, Amanda's jealous former boyfriend (played by Craig Sheffer), further complicates matters.

Connection to Pretty in Pink

Some Kind of Wonderful is noted for having the same basic premise as Hughes and Deutch's previous film, Pretty in Pink: A quiet blue-collar high-schooler with aspirations of upward mobility (Stoltz in Wonderful and Molly Ringwald in Pretty in Pink) becomes infatuated with a "popular" classmate (Thompson and Andrew McCarthy), while remaining oblivious to the attraction to them felt by their close friend of the opposite sex (Masterson and Jon Cryer) and avoiding the attention of a spiteful and petty "rich kid" with a connection to the love interest (Sheffer and James Spader). Hughes originally wrote Pretty in Pink ending with Ringwald and Cryer's characters falling in love, but was pressured into changing the story so that Ringwald would end up with McCarthy. Supposedly, Hughes wrote Some Kind of Wonderful in response, with the ending he preferred.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack for this movie had a large number of unknown artists for the day, which certainly wasn't the norm for a John Hughes production at that time.

Perhaps ahead of it's time, the soundtrack features artists with typically 80's band names such as Flesh for Lulu, and Lick the Tins, and although there is not one hit amongst any of them, this takes nothing away from what is an excellent soundtrack. Each song complements the scene perfectly.

From the pulsating opening track, to the night club scene, to the kissing lesson scene, to the climatic party scene, and finally, the beautiful cover of I Can't Help Falling In Love during the closing credits, every song appears to have been chosen with meticulous precision.

The soundtrack for Some Kind of Wonderful is available on CD (initially released in 1987 on Cassette and LP), although to the disappointment of many, does not include all the songs present in the movie.

For those wondering what song appears where in this movie, we have detailed the scenes in which a particular song appears, if the song is present on the soundtrack, and the lyrics.

Due to the obscurity of some of these artists and songs, lyrics to some of the songs are impossible to find on major lyric web sites, or karaoke disks. Therefore we've had to transcribe a large number of them ourselves.

If the song doesn't appear on the soundtrack CD we have given you an alternative album where the song does feature.

Abuse(aka Dr Mabuse)

Why does it hurt when my heart misses the beat
The man without shadow promises you the world
Tell him your dreams, and fanatical needs
He's buying them all, with cash

Sell him your soul, sell him your soul, sell him your soul
Never look back, never look back
Sell him your soul, sell him your soul
Never look back
Never look back
Never look back
Sell him your soul

He's devoted to the devil, fascinated by crime
Glamorous death is his destination, eternal passion his gain

Sell him your soul, sell him your soul, sell him your soul
Never look back, never look back
Sell him your soul, sell him your soul
Never look back
Never look back
Sell him your soul, sell him your soul
Never look back

Why does it hurt, why why does it hurt

He's a satanic gambler, but you just the fool
And you've already lost the chance of your lifetime
So don't be a fool, don't be a fool
Kein Zurueck fuer dich, there's no way back
Sell him your soul

The Hardest Walk

Performed by The Jesus and Mary Chain
This song is present on the soundtrack CD.

I never thought that this day would ever come
When your words and your touch just struck me numb
Oh and it's plain to see that it's dead
The thing swims in blood and it's cold stoney dead
It's so hard not to feel ashamed
Of the loving living games we play
Each day

And I'm stuck in a shack
Down the back of the sea
Oh and I'm alive and I'm alone
Inside a sick sick dream
Oh is it me
Is it me that feels so weak
I cannot deceive but I find it hard to speak

The hardest walk you could ever take
Is the walk you take from a to b to c

I walk
Oh honey I talk
Don't want you to want me
Don't want you to need me
Don't want you to need me
Don't want you to need me

And I walk

Watts drives Keith to school

Friday night

Playing on Shayne's car radio

Driving from the Restaurant to the Art Museum

I Go Crazy

Performed by Flesh for Lulu
This song is present on the soundtrack CD.

(spoken) Oh, I go crazy, I go crazy
I go crazy when I'm without you

What have I done today just sat and watched the jets fly over
A car goes by and the sun goes down we talk about the town

This city's mad in the head and sick in the soul
All the stars flew away a long time ago
Isn't that nice like Miami Vice

I go crazy when I'm without you
I go crazy when I'm without you

Well your life is like an infants dream it's like everything's on TV
You see your face in the mirror could it be your place in the mirror
And so we turn on the TV one more time
And we see that everything is fine

But what have I done today i go crazy
What have I done today i go crazy when I'm without you

I go crazy, I go crazy
I I I go crazy when I'm without you
Go crazy I go crazy when I'm without you

What have I done today, What have I done today

Sue-Ellen looks so upset this isn't the first time
And it won't be the last things going on behind her back
Oh they give you a heart attack

I go crazy when I'm without you, go crazy
I go crazy when I'm without you, go crazy
I go crazy when I'm without you
But what have I done today I go crazy

I go crazy, I go crazy, I go crazy

But what have I done today, I go crazy
But what have I done today
I go crazy when I'm without you

I go crazy
I go crazy when I'm without you, go crazy
I go crazy when I'm without you, go crazy
I go crazy when I'm without you
But what have I done today I go crazy

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